Vacation. Simplified.

Holiday Travel Tips

‘Tis the holiday season! For business travelers, this means an increase in delays due to the additional traffic, weather, and infrequent fliers who are less familiar with airport procedures. We spoke to business travel expert Road Warriorette for suggestions on making this hectic travel time go more smoothly.

Oakland International Airport (OAK)

The Oakland International Airport is the 2nd largest airport in the Bay Area and closest in location to the region’s top tourist and entertainment destinations. Each year more than 11 million passengers travel to and from OAK.

The airport has service primarily to domestic & Mexico destinations, along with a few European routes on some of the newer Transatlantic low-cost airlines.

Hotels Introduce A.I Devices

Smart devices are becoming more and more prevalent in daily life, from televisions to thermostats to toasters. Devices with digital assistants, like Amazon’s Alexa or iOS’s Siri, are also expanding at a rapid pace. It makes sense that the hotel industry, with their focus on hospitality, would take advantage of this new technology to make their guests’ stays more comfortable.

Marriott, Best Western, and Starwood are only some of the brands currently testing digital assistants in hotel rooms. Guests who stay in a room with an artificially intelligent assistant can have the device perform a number of tasks, including tell the time, play music, order room service, and even open or close the curtains.

Marriott is using their Aloft hotel in Boston to test both Alexa and Siri to determine which digital assistant customers prefer. In addition to the features mentioned, guests can control their television, lights, and room temperature with their voice. That will make turning on the air conditioner from bed much easier!

One thing customers should not anticipate is the devices being used as marketing tools. Users have reacted very negatively toward unexpected ads coming from their digital assistants. Therefore at this time hotels are using them as a way to enhance the guest experience rather than increase revenue.

TECH OF THE MONTH

Best Portable Chargers

As a business traveler, it is very important to have your mobile device charged at all time. You rely on your phone for itineraries, business calls, emails, and directions to meetings.

Here is a review of the best portable chargers based on three key categories.

Best for Battery Capacity:

iMuto 30,000mAh Power Bank: At 30,000mAh of battery power this charger will get you to the other side of the world, and back. It also boasts three USB ports.

Best for Compact Size:

Anker PowerCore II: This charger is only 1.5cms thick and just over 200g. You will get two full phone charges out of the 10,000mAh.

Best for Laptops and Phones:

RAVPower Universal Power Bank Travel Charger: The 20,1000mAh battery can charge both your phone and your laptop. It features USB-C, USB, and an AC output.